PrepTest 144, Section 4, Question 2
Wanda: It is common sense that one cannot(64 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(10 more words not shown)
- AIt is unhealthy(7 more words not shown)
- BThe quality of(7 more words not shown)
- CSupermarket tabloids should(4 more words not shown)
- DMessiness impairs artistic(1 more words not shown)
- EOne should be(11 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Does a writer really need other writing in the room to write? Couldn't imagination or remembered experiences provide something to work with? And some people might concentrate better in a quiet, empty space.
Those are possible responses to Wanda. But Vernon makes a different one. He accepts the comparison with a writer long enough to ask what kind of material would help. Good writing and supermarket tabloids aren't interchangeable in his example. Then he points to Wanda's laundry and empty soda bottles. Having plenty of things to look at doesn't establish that they are useful sources of artistic inspiration.
What we’re looking for
We're asked for the principle behind Vernon's response. Follow his distinction: it matters what the stimulating material is like, not just whether the studio contains lots of it. Keep our own objections about imagination and distraction separate from the point he actually makes.
Working the answers
- A
Vernon doesn't say the clutter is unhealthy. Someone could worry about sanitation or tripping over things, but that isn't the objection here. He questions whether these objects provide useful artistic inspiration.
- BCorrect
The quality of the stimuli matters. A writer's access to written material isn't enough if that material isn't good writing; likewise, a room full of visible objects doesn't automatically give Wanda good inspiration. This principle connects both parts of Vernon's response.
- C
The tabloid example helps Vernon draw a broader distinction about the quality of inspiration. C focuses only on that example and doesn't state the principle connecting it to Wanda's studio. Something could also be stimulating without being the sort of useful artistic stimulus Vernon has in mind.
- D
Failing to help creativity isn't the same as impairing creativity. Vernon asks whether the laundry and bottles inspire Wanda; he doesn't claim that messiness actively makes her less creative. We shouldn't add the distraction objection we might have made ourselves.
- E
This resembles our initial thought that imagination might let someone create in an empty room. Vernon doesn't make that point. He challenges the quality of Wanda's proposed stimuli, not her claim that she needs stimuli in the first place.
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